U of T partners to launch new Brooklyn research institute

The University of Toronto is part of a project to build a multi-institution urban sciences campus in Brooklyn, a response to an ambitious plan by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg to build top-flight science and engineering hubs that will boost the city's potential for economic growth. University of Toronto photo

The University of Toronto is a partner in a major new initiative to launch an applied sciences research institute in Brooklyn, led by New York University and the Polytechnic Institute of NYU.

On Monday afternoon, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg will announce an agreement to establish the Centre for Urban Science and Progress (CUSP) in Brooklyn, which will conduct research on challenges facing global cities, such as infrastructure, energy efficiency, transportation congestion, and public health.

A U of T spokesperson confirmed the university's participation in a consortium of universities partnering to create the new school. Other universities accepted are Carnegie-Mellon University, the City University of New York, the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay and the University of Warwick.

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The U of T will send master's and PhD students to study at CUSP, which is expected to house more than 500 students in all, and is promising to create "a new and cutting-edge professional Master's program focused on cities engineering and management."

"Our university and the entire Toronto region will see tremendous benefits from this work and from collaborations with colleagues from around the world," U of T provost Cheryl Misak said.

The agreement to create the CUSP will see it take over a 460,000-square-foot building currently used by New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority, with NYU contributing some $50-million, and the city providing $15-million in benefits, including tax breaks, according to the New York Times.

The new Brooklyn campus is part of the larger Applied Sciences NYC project, a city-driven initiative pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into top-tier applied-sciences and engineering facilities in an effort to spur the city's future economic growth. Last year, Cornell University beat out NYU in a competition for funding, and is creating a high-tech graduate school on Roosevelt Island.

Some CUSP classes could begin as soon as September of 2013, and will offer internships through corporate partners IMB, CISCO and Siemens. The U of T is the lone Canadian school involved.

James Bradshaw is banking reporter for the Report on Business. He covered media from 2014 to 2016, and higher education from 2010 to 2014. Prior to that, he worked as a cultural reporter for Globe Arts, and has written for both the Toronto section and the editorial page. More

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